Cereal Favorites: The Homemade Versions

Celebrate the official day of cereal with the delicious challenge of making your own. It’s possible to create a crunchy breakfast bowl better than Kellogg’s.
By Annelise McAuliffe

The official day of cereal is this weekend! As a kid we loved cereal and as an adult we still love it, especially on busy mornings or as a late-night snack. Rather than spending a lazy Sunday morning eating a quick bowl of cereal, how about making you own? We are not ones to turn down a challenge, so let’s see if we create a crunchy breakfast bowl better than Kellogg’s can.

Learn how to make a version that is better than the box, and perfect for mornings when only something sweet will do. Rice flour gives these squares great flavor and makes us wonder if we switched it for all of the all-purpose flour, could we conquer the gluten-free cinnamon toast crunch before General Mills? Get the recipe here.

You can have cookies for breakfast. Especially when there is oatmeal and whole wheat flour in them. Maybe that is not the best reasoning, but regardless, those ingredients add such great flavor that the boxed kind could never replicate. Get the recipe here.

If you are looking for a super-sweet rendition of the original, this is not your recipe. However, if you want something nutty and rich in real chocolate, this almond flour recipe is a delicious breakfast project. Get the recipe here.

The Original: Lucky Charms
The DIY Swap: Make Your Own Marshmallows

http://www.cupcakeproject.com

Not only can you control what goes into the charms, but you can also pick the color and shape that you choose to have swimming in your milk. These are a bit of a project, but they are so fun to design. Make a batch and then throw them into any bowl of cereal when things are feeling boring. Get the recipe here.

This version is 100% rice, no other funky things, but it still tastes as great as the original version. Adjust the recipe to be soft and chewy or more crunchy depending on what you prefer. Get the recipe here.

The Original: Froot Loops
The DIY Swap: Fruit Loops Using Real Fruit

http://glutenfreeonashoestring.com

Use real dehydrated fruit in the cereal dough to create authentic flavors with the nutrients still in tact. These loops are a project to create their iconic shape, but feel free to roll them into balls if you are crunched for time. Get the recipe here.

The Original: Pops
The DIY Swap: Corn Puff Cereal

http://comfybelly.com/

This cereal is super simple to recreate and adjust according to your tastes. Puff corn, roll in honey, sea salt, and a touch of oil to make it all coat and stick and you are done. We are dreaming of this recipe with a hint of cinnamon and maple syrup, too. Get the recipe here.

Mandatory family outings to the Detroit farmers' market and nightly home-cooked meals cultivated Annelise's respect and curiosity for food. A graduate of The Culinary Institute of America, she spends her free time in New York City recipe testing, eating breakfast all day, and dreaming up international culinary adventures.